Heroes of Darkness

XXV

ALEXANDER

Alexander Specter stood straight and tall outside his father's chamber, but inside, he was shaking. His Spirit Pokémon, Banette, floated silently, timid but determined, in the air alongside him. As he made his way from his room to the study where he knew he would find Lord Specter, he noted the absence of guards and patrols roaming the halls. He nervously fingered the dagger that he had hidden under his belt.

"It's time, Banette. Double-team, now," he whispered to the Ghost Pokémon. The little ghost seemed to flicker in the torch-lit hall, and one by one, swift shadows flickered around the stones, hiding in the darkness where the flames couldn't reach. It wasn't his lumbering father that Alex worried about. It was Dusknoir.

Alex raised a sweaty hand and pushed open the door to his father's study. Inside, he found Lord Specter speaking with Franco, his captain of guards. A warm fire was flickering on the edge of the room with a log poker lazily resting above the mantle. Both men looked up at Alex with startled looks on their faces.

"Father," Alex said, trying to hide the tremor in his voice. "I wish to speak with you."

Lord Specter's large figure was seated in a comfortable chair behind his desk. "Alexander, just a moment, we're-"

Franco interrupted. "It's quite alright, my lord." Alex felt the captain's eyes scour him, like he was seeing right through him. For an instant, Alex almost reached for the dagger. "I'll leave you to it." Franco and his Ninetails bowed to Lord Specter, and silently walked out of the chamber.

When the door slammed shut behind them, Alex's father spoke. "We were just discussing the search for Elli. I'm sorry, son, there have been no new updates. Your brother and I know this wasn't your fault."

Alex looked around the room. He could see Dusknoir's faint outline in a dark corner of the room, its red eye trying to pierce into Alex's soul. To his trained eye, Alex could make out the shapes of Banette's copies bouncing from shadow to shadow in the flickering torchlights. They were surrounding the room, just as planned.

"I'm not here to talk about Elli," Alex said sternly. His father took note of his tone, and Dusknoir seemed to stir.

"Then it is your Aunt, as I suspected," Lord Specter retorted. "You must be as surprised as any of us to learn of her treachery. I'm here to help, Alexander. Have a seat, and let me help you." He gestured with his hand for the seat across his desk.

Alex moved closer, but declined to sit. "Do you remember at my Aunt's... sentencing," he had wanted to say execution, "When I asked about my mother?" Lord Specter didn't respond, but Alex could tell he had expected this much. He continued. "My whole life, it was my Aunt Caitlyn who had told me about my mother and her family. Father, why haven't you told me anything?" Alex felt his eyes begin to water, and the words came out choked.

Lord Specter sighed. "Alex, you know if your stepmother ever heard me speak about your mother, she would take it out on you. I've tried to tell her to hold back, but there's only so much I can do."

Alex began to get annoyed. His father was changing the subject. He looked up around the room. All the Banette were in place. Dusknoir was still gazing intently at Alex and the real Banette at his father's desk. The trap was ready to be sprung at any moment.

"Don't change the subject, father, I'm a man grown now. Leo's mother isn't here. It's just us. I just want to know, for once... What was she like? Did she love me? How did she... leave us?" Alex already knew the answer. I saw her die in the Pool of Memories, he thought to himself. I felt you choke the life out of her.